The Domino Effect
by Amazyrak
Summary: The Okama King met a young Luffy and did what the Okama King does best, watch the Domino Effect. FemLuffy, slightly smarter as well. Pairing to be decided. Have fun. Review!
1. Adventure Start! Prolouge

**Hey, this is my first One Piece fanfiction so say hello! I've done multiple Harry Potters already but the lack of OP fictions that _aren't _crack finally got to me. I did a female Luffy because that's what I've been reading lately. Never liked the LuffyxMarco ship, Marco's not even cute!**

**Here's my prologue. Please don't mind any mistakes, I type my stories on my phone and don't have a beta. I'm looking for an alternate Devils Fruit to give Luffy so review or PM me some suggestions!_  
_**

**This is my interpretation of what would have happened if Shanks hadn't been at the docks for Luffy to cut himself, instead he was going to set up for Iva who decided to come over.**

**The Domino Effect**

**Chapter One - Search for Strength, Hormonal Changes (Prologue) **

Lantern light spewed across the oaken bar top, dancing off bottles of ale. A young boy sat, fascinated by the different qualities of each drink. The empty bottles filtered, sending streams of color against the wood grain; the full sparkled, sending shimmers onto the faces of the patrons. A wide grin made its way onto the small face of the boy, though only ebony tips could be seen from atop the counter.

Laughter echoed throughout the room, the boy looked around. His short legs fumbled on the stool he sat on, but the momentary clumsiness was ignored in favor of hopping down onto the dirty planks of the bar floor.

The door leading outside swung open, but a small figure was already racing under tables and chairs to the sound of laughter. A grunt was heard as the boy previously mentioned catapulted himself into the arms of a red headed man.

"Shanks, Shanks! I was waiting for you." The boy pouted, brow furrowed in an unconscious puppy eyed manner. The man now known as Shanks only smiled indulgently. The young child in his arms squirmed and continued his rambles. "I was going to show you today how strong I am; if I'm strong, you'll take me on an adventure with you, won't you? Then you'll teach me to be the Pirate King!" The man laughed loudly.

"It takes a proper man to be on the seas Luffy, takes more than simply being strong to be Pirate King." The boy cocked his head to the side, not understanding Shanks words. "Any man can be _strong _Luffy, it takes a pirate to be weak."

"I don't get it, Ben said a pirate had to be strong. Pirates have to endure pain, pirates have to fight. That's strength." Luffy looked up as he spoke, unconsciously burying his head into Shanks shoulder.

"What is strength- to have no weakness, or to overcome those that you have?" Shanks set Luffy down on the floor. He ruffled the younger's hair and stepped away to accept tankard from a crew-mate, leaving Luffy to clench his fists and think about what Shanks had said.

The bar slowly filled, mixing the still half sober Red Haired Pirates with the normal town drunkards. Luffy was so lost in thought he didn't notice the small but intricate chest being brought in or the wafting smell of fruit coming off of it. He only sat at a table, reevaluating his short life with this new philosophy of Shanks'.

The moments passed, becoming minutes, becoming too long for Luffy to count. The pirates laughed and drank and grew drunk. None of the crew really missed the small bundle of annoyance called Luffy in their inhibited state. Yet still Luffy sat, staring at the flickering light of a candle, and thinking. He wasn't disturbed from his ponderings till the heavy clunk of a glass hitting wood sounded. Luffy looked up to what he thought would be the face of a sloppy and unrefined drunk, but awkwardly shifted as he looked to the overly done eyes of what he assumed to be a pirate.

Make up caked the...person's face. Purple lipstick and a dark blush, brightly done eyeshadow and the largest afro Luffy had ever seen. The chair scraped on the ground and the person reclined back, legs crossed and on the table, tall glass of whiskey in hand. The pirate dwarfed Luffy as well as most others in the room, but despite this he(she) was still seemed the kindest of the lot. Though, that may of had something to do with the soft smile of his face and the absence of slur in his voice.

"Young child, what are you doing all alone, and in a bar no less?" Luffy looked at the stranger.

"Thinking." He replied, setting his head to his hands and looking wearily at the man. "...Are you a pirate?"

The stranger threw back his head and laughed, hair bouncing wildly. "Do I look like a pirate?" For once, Luffy had no answer. The person's grin widened and he leaned in conspiringly and whispered, "Indeed I am a pirate, one of the best. King of the Okamas,you may call me Iva." Luffy looked unimpressed. Iva took another sip of his drink. So this was Dragon's kid, Eh? The proclaimed King of Okamas relaxed in his chair._  
_

"What does it mean to be strong?" Iva didn't even open an eye.

"You want to know, you think you have what it takes?" Luffy nodded vigorously, though to which question was uncertain. Iva cracked one eyelid open, then planted both feet on either side of the table, leaned forward and loomed over Luffy. "To be strong is to bypass all obstacles for the sake of what you're fighting for, to be strong is to never fall down without giving it your all, to be strong is to take every chance to prove your worth and be better for it." If Luffy was scared by the passion Iva showed, he didn't let it become apparent. He only sat, riveted, through the speech. "To be strong is to throw yourself off a cliff and down an abyss of deepest despair, only to rise again against all odds." The King of Okamas was right up against Luffy's tiny face now, nose to nose. "Do you want to become strong Luffy?" The boy in question didn't ask how his name was known, perhaps it didn't occur to him, or perhaps he didn't care. The only thing that mattered in that second was the trembling of Luffy's hands and the steadiness of his head as he nodded, yes.

Iva stood back, pleased. He took a single finger and tapped Luffy's nose, right where the Okamas had been only just before. "Then Luffy dear. Defy. All. Odds." Each of the last three words was punctuated with a sharp tap on the nose. With that, Iva gave a smile and turned, leaving the tavern.

As Luffy watched the lumbering body of Iva trot away, singing a loud and highly off-key tune, Luffy felt himself changing. It was a subtle shift, and Luffy didn't realize it for what it was. He only knew that on that drunken night, he would become strong. He lost something that he would never again gain, but he would come back and fight to be just as good.

**Ok that was cheesy... Review! ... Ya know this might have been better if I didn't do it when I had mean bosses on my back when I wrote it...**


	2. But Princess, The Tower is Safe and Warm

_Mwah, to all of you! I got into a really angst filled mood and this is the product. I'm relatively worried that I'll have to up this story rating so if you think so, post a review about it. There is no Beta for this, no second reading what so ever. I hope that you will like this and tell me if I should write more.  
_

_So yes, Luffy is a rubber girl and yes, she will be sisters with Ace. Sabo will die. It's just cannon. If you don't want any of that, separate or colectivly, the answer to every problem is review.  
_

_I claim no ownership of One Piece or affiliated subject matters.  
_

**The Domino Effect**

**Chapter Two - **

**But Princess, the Tower is Safe and Warm**

Defiant, to an extent one so young should never know, Monkey D. Luffy stood against her grandfather. Her chest heaved with the lingering effects of shouting so hard, and though the Vice-Admiral tried to hide it, so heaved his chest as well. Yet despite the tense air oppressing the area, Luffy still glared undefeated at the man towering over her. The fact that this man was too many years to count her senior and a seasoned solider was lost on the child, for a child she still was, but that couldn't stop the shivers that ran down her spine at the prospect of Garp _truly _mad.

It had been years since old man had last lost his cool so completely, never had it happened in the young girl standing before him's lifetime. But she had heard stories. They were tall tale's really, fables centered on destruction and mayhem beyond even the pirates terror. Luffy didn't think that her old man could really go off like that though. The worst that could happen were a few alligators, a wolf or two, and a salty puddle and she didn't fear those, no respectable Pirate King would!

Never the less, the pupils dilated to a frenzied state and hands _bruising_ the wood of his pipe sent warning bells to even Luffy's dense head. She rose from her position of weary aftermath, nails slowly trailing the denim of her shorts as she shook herself off and rose to whatever height she could muster at her tender age.

"I. Will. Not."

Her grandfather's eyes narrowed, the tendons of his jaw physically constricting as the joints of his mouth clamped together in a menacing way. Tremors racked his arms as he attempted to reign his temper.

"This is not a discussion Luffy."

He only wanted the best for his grandchild, he only wanted what was right. Garp couldn't handle having to see yet another of his progeny on the list for execution, it would tear him apart. He'd made mistakes with Dragon, so many mistakes and that was irreparable- but Luffy... Luffy was still young, and innocent, and pure. Luffy could live a life without strife, hurt, or betrayal. If only she wasn't so eager to waste her life away on _piracy._ Peppered hair fell into his eyes, and Garp looked up to the face of the willful devil his son had named Luffy. He didn't know how he had turned into a she, but after the initial shock he couldn't bring himself to be saddened. It only hardened his resolve to protect Luffy.

Before he may have been able to understand Luffys craving for adventure, before he may have been able to allow a few endevors to grant Luffy his freedom, before...he may have been able to console himself with anger when Luffy inevitably rushed off to become a criminal. But now Luffy was so much more vulnerable. The things that happened to a woman on the seas were terrible.

As a marine supervisor Garp had seen more than his share of victims of the cruelty of pirates; civilians, nobles, even a crew's own nakama. It never mattered when they were laying on the deck, broken farther than simply in body, crushed into an empty shell of what they once were and what they could never be. No matter how strong Luffy could be, what would happen when her own crew crept up on her in the middle of the night, she had no guard then.

As the Vice-Admiral looked up to the face of his granddaughter, small traces of furious tears gathering at the edges of her eyes and her face flushed deep. His vision blurred slightly and her image was momentarily replaced by a smaller, more desolate figure from the man's memories. Broken and bloodied, leaking a liquid that was most certainly _not_ blood, Garp remembered that day in painful vividness. The vicious and sick laughs as the marine vessel had approached, the screams in a voice so achingly high and young, the leer on the pirate-scum's face as he proclaimed how _enjoyable_ the experience had been, the tear stricken face Garp swore to himself never to forget. The child of those days had been only 5, maybe 6, and that was all they had known about her. They never learned her name. No parent came forward to claim the body. What if Luffy ended up like that? No, better to keep her safe and where she could meet a strong marine to fall in love with, have an enchanted life and be happy. The rage on Luffy's face was only for now, he convinced himself. She would be safe soon.

Wind whipped frantically as the small silhouette turned to leave her grandfather in the street. The wrathful stomps across the flagstones pounded, the people of the town didn't even try to hide their gawking. Makino stood in the doorway frame, watching silently.

"Tell the Marine ship we depart as soon as I get there, no later." Garp's eyes never left Luffy as he spoke. Makino looked at him with a worried expression but the gruff man never looked her way. With a nod, Makino left and Garp was alone, watching the path which Luffy had taken for a long while before heading after her.

Fury enveloped the small form stomping along the dirt path and into the forest. The old man had always harped on about the Marines, that wasn't anything new; he sung praises about how great they were like every other visit and thrived upon the prestige his Marine reputation granted him. But that life that suited Luffy, something straight and narrow would never be able to contain the enthusiasm he (now she) had for adventure. Luffy huffed and kicked one of the stones which lined the pathway. The small projectile ricocheted into the trees, causing loud thunks and thwacks before falling eerily silent on the moss-covered forest floor. A wife, how could anyone think her a _wife_?

Garp hadn't been so annoying before the incident, he hadn't been so vehemently against Luffy traveling on the high seas. But now…now he was even against Luffy becoming a _Marine_. Instead he wanted her to sit away someplace and worry for the men, never knowing anything much outside the walls of a house, never able to taste adventure except for in the tales her husband would bring home. The eyes of the small girl, which dominated her face now after the change of genders, began to moisten. Luffy sniffed irritably and rubbed the small lines where she refused to acknowledge the tear tracks that were beginning to form. She hadn't been so quick to cry before and Luffy tried to push away the growing despair within her, but still her lips quivered and her limbs trembled with a force wrecking through her body. With a quiet sob, Luffy lowered herself onto the dirt of the clearing she found herself in. She was so shrouded in her desperate breakdown, the presence of her grandfather behind her went unnoticed.

His eyes were hard, merciless. He stared at the crying figure of his beloved granddaughter, the sight would have made a man any less determined choke and comfort but Garp only stared. He tread carefully, approaching from behind and depersonalizing himself from the heartbreaking scene. A shudder made its way across Luffy's spine and in a fluid move, she was lifted away and being carted toward the Marine ship. Tears stained the uniform on her grandfathers back as he walked, but neither cared as the deliberate pace made its way to the ship and to Luffy's inevitable cage.

* * *

Days passed, then months. Two and a half months and Luffy was counting the days. Some of her old spark had come back in that time, but it was doubtful that the full effects of a cage would vanish. The changes were subtle, Luffy being slightly less loud and more weary of the Marine men her grandfather paraded around her. It was only to be expected though, because even when it was never mentioned, Luffy knew somehow that these were the people the old man considered 'potential suitors.'

The bang of her door sounded and Luffy stretched on the bed of her room. It sounded again and she glared at the door. Her feet slammed to the floor and her torso fell forward, she rose like a zombie. The growing curls of her hair fell into her eyes, and her kiddie sundress twisted awkwardly around her unaccustomed body. It was lucky her dress was long though because at that moment the wall burst open to her grandfather, impatient at the lack of response at the door. The old man blushed heavily at her predicament and tilted his head to the side. His words however, lost none of their volume or passion as they likely spread to all corners of the Marine base.

"My dear Luffy-chan! I hadn't expected you to be...to be.." He gulped tightly and coughed, then turned to the rubble of the doorway and patched it roughly before facing Luffy again. "I'm leaving for a mission today and I've arranged for you to be at an acquaintance of mine's home. I will come back as soon as possible so don't pick up any of their habits got it, bandits are not something for a blossoming young lady to base herself off of." He gave Luffy a stern impression of a parental figure, but the girl in question simply grinned and walked out the again crumbling hole in the wall.

"They better have a lot of meat, Ey Old Man?"

**_Angst! Review more._**


	3. Dusk Comes

**The last chapter was really short, as some of the reviews have pointed out, and it had no legitimate reason to be. I added more to that chapter and updated it so if you read this story previously and haven't reread that chapter, you might want to do that. There is no absolute need for you to do so, you can infer from context what happened, but I still hope you like my writing enough that you'll willing read more slight filler. I hope it allows a better grasp of the storyline I'm planning and it definitely gives a better perception of setting. This chapter though, will be very short because it's mostly filler and transitions.  
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**There is also a part a little way into this chapter when it simply says something along the lines of "Goes along with cannon events." This is not only me being lazy (though I admit it may have something to do with it,) but that section of the story is long and rather detailed to write. **

**Also though, in the first chapter I wrote about how Shanks wasn't at the port "that day." I'm not sure how many of you noticed, but that means Luffy has no scar. I thought about removing it from the storyline completely, but it does add character to Luffy and serves as a distinctive trait. I won't have it mentioned yet, so if you really don't want that scar there you can post a review or private message me and I'll set up a poll for it.  
**

The Domino Effect

Chapter 3

Dusk Comes

A shy but wide smile stretched itself across her face and her hands twitched nervously as Luffy watched the boy on the rock formation in front of her. He seemed to radiate a sense of sadness and angst, and that in turn made Luffy unhappy, but it also stirred a need to watch over the boy, even if he was her senior, even if he had just spit in her face. The expression on his freckled face was fixed in a sort of apathy that mirrored Luffy's when she watched the Marine men Garp flaunted in front of her. It was...broken, and almost as if all his dreams were decaying in front of him. But that didn't make sense, why would someone who had the chance to explore the world as a free person act like they were simply locked away into a cage? The plush of Luffy's lips set together into a resolute sternness as she walked forward, out of the old mans sight.

"I'm Luffy, be my friend."

The boy looked at her disinterestedly and shook his head. "I'm not friends with babies or _girls_. Get out of my sight, spoiled brat." Then he walked off into the forest. Luffy tried to follow, but the old man pulled her back to look up at the one he called DanDan. The old woman looked surprised at the appearance of a girl and stared blankly at Luffy.

Luffy stared back. "I _hate_ mountain bandits," she stated. DanDan didn't look fazed. Garp cleared his throat behind the two interlocked in a glaring contest and fixed his eyes on Luffy.

"Right, I'll be gone for a half year. That's 6 months now, Lu." Luffy glared at her grandfather and crossed her arms over her chest. Garp continued as if he hadn't noticed the defensive stance. "You'll stay with DanDan here; there's a boy DanDan's taking care of as well, his name's Ace. He's three years older than you... that means he's 10." The old man yet again pretended he didn't see the death glare given to him by Luffy. He kneeled down in front of her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Ace is going to become a fine Marine, strong in body and will and spirit. If he's anything like his parents he'll be a handsome devil as well. So get to know him, you might be seeing a lot more of him in a few years."

DanDan's eyebrow rose at the not so subtle hinting of the old fart wagon. Garp playing matchmaker? She almost felt bad for the little brat. If her grandfather had tried something like that on her...Luffy clearly had a similar train of thought because she bit down, hard enough to draw blood, on her grandfathers forearm.

Garp scowled, DanDan laughed uproariously.

* * *

_The events of Luffy meeting Sabo and becoming siblings with Ace and Sabo happen like cannon._

* * *

The tree-house the three pranksters built was large and relatively comfortable. Both of the elder brothers spent extra time and sacrificed a little breathing room for Luffy to have her own space, but more often than not she simply slipped into one of her brother's futons when the night was dark and everyone was asleep. Neither of them condoned that, it could lead to awkward situations in the future with Luffy as innocent as she was, but for some reason they simply couldn't say no to Luffy when her face was full of sleep and her nose was scrunched up so cutely in a yawn.

Life in those last 3 months with her brothers before Garp came back was soothing and calm, if a little bit annoying. She was more often than not included in the runs for hide and meat and the sparring, but never was she to come for trading with certain people at the Trash Heap. She raved at the unfairness of it all, and tried to follow more than once, but each time the vigilant brothers would stop her plans and one would wait with her until the transaction was made. Pedophiles and other such sick people lurked in a few of the garbage piles, Ace and Sabo weren't ready to expose or risk Luffy to_ that_, simply for the lesser safety that having the third member of their triad offered.

Other changes in the treatment of the youngest sibling appeared in the trio after too long, too small for Luffy herself to notice but clear to the bandits and villagers on the rare occasions all three kids went out together to a place with other human life. Luffy was constantly flanked by her two protective brothers, she relied on them for so much more than support. Her smiles, her laughs, they grew so much brighter in the comfort and nurture of the small constructed family. And it was a family, Luffy the beloved daughter, Ace assuming the position of Father/Older Brother, and Sabo quite like the mother of both. As a brother, Ace would taunt Luffy; encouraging her in his own rough manner with a quick kick in the right place to correct her stance, an impromptu wrestling match when things not befitting to Luffy's eyes happened around the Trash Heap to divert her attention, but never interfering when there was a lesson Luffy could learn herself. Sabo had a more direct (and loud) approach. He would yelp in alarm and force modesty when Luffy began to emulate her masculine brothers, scold her harshly whenever she never ate her vegetables, mediate the tough love between Ace and her, and explained the little things even when Luffy never listened. Luffy admired Ace as someone to aspire to be (right after Shanks) but she adored Sabo; and though neither were the most gentle of people, Luffy felt at home with them both.

But all too soon, the 6 months Garp had been away on a mission for were up. He came to visit Ace, and once again take away Luffy from a place she called home. She hid, curled up in a blanket against a tree in the forest; but the old man found her. She kicked and screamed and bit and scratched; but the stoic Vice-Admiral only scolded her for unladylike behavior.

She was back at Marine Headquarters when a Den-Den Mushi call arrived from one of the bandits. Luffy cried herself to sleep that night, and the many nights after. Garp gave her 2 weeks in "DanDan's care" to mourn. It wasn't enough to recover from the loss, a million years wouldn't be enough to recover from the loss. Not when that loss is for a friend, a mother, a brother.

**Ah, as for pairings. **

**_IMPORTANT STUFF HERE PEOPLE_  
**

**Pairings. Ships. (Pirate Ships!) All of that shebang. Not only do we have the main pairing, but how about them side pairings hmm? NamixRobin? If you're weird enough to ask for it then sure! FrankyxRobin? I doubt your judgement skills but sure I'll indulge that!**

**So far for main pairing though:  
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**Luffy x Ace : 0  
**

**Luffy x Shanks : 0  
**

**Luffy x Zoro : 0  
**

**Luffy x Sangi : 0**

**Luffy x Law : 0  
**

**Luffy x Other : 0  
**

**Yes, this was short. Short like...like a corgi puppy short. Yes, that's a good descriptor. Everybody loves corgis. Give a corgi some love people, and review, review, review! And more reviews, and then even more! Then go on some search engine and give some corgis a little love. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Did you go look at cute corgi puppies? I don't think you did, you just ignored that part didn't you? I'm disappointed. Any person who did go and look at corgis, this chapter is dedicated to you.**

**As of right now the pairing votes stand at:**

**Luffy and Law - 4**

**Luffy and Ace - 5  
**

**Luffy and Shanks - 5**

**Luffy and Marco - 1**

**Luffy and Zoro - 1**

**I don't know if anyone considered this, but there's also Luffy and Mihawk.**

_The manga One Piece and all other affiliated works are property of their respective copyright owners. I receive no compensation, monetary or otherwise, for this fanfiction.  
_

Domino Effect

When a butterfly dies, does anyone notice, does anyone care? Life carries on, seasons pass. The crumbled carcass will degrade and dissolve 'till not even the solitude of the earth remembers its flutters in fondness or even at all. No matter how brightly colored, no matter how skillfully patterned - the splendor of winged grace fades away to only dirt. To Luffy, Sabo was a butterfly. So wonderfully bright and happy, carefree in a way, but no one remembered him now. Only her and Ace. Not even his father, who once had chased him through the town in attempts to have him become a man of stuffy prestige, not even the young girl by the docks who Sabo would gift flowers for a smile, not even the fallen oak trunk where Sabo would sit and laugh at the mock battles of his siblings. Each memory was forgotten. His father moved on with an adopted son, the girl married an old man and fights with him still every moment they're together, the trunk was dragged out by foresters. Only Ace and Luffy remembered, only Ace and Luffy mourned.

The day that Luffy went back to Dawn Island, after hearing by DenDen Mushi of Sabo's death, the only thing she was capable of doing was sitting by Ace, broken down and more lifeless than even the long weeks in Marine HQ ever made her. She sat beside Ace, and they didn't speak for a long while. The furious whispers of Garp and Curly Dadan were aggravation to the wound, but Luffy welcomed it. Sabo was dead, and she hadn't been able to say goodbye. A sob sent tremors through her body. Ace shut his eyes tight. Dadan and Garp were still going at it in voices meant to be hushed.

The roughness of Dadan's tenor shook both siblings with the memories of better days. "You can't take her back, poor Ace's dealin' with the loss of one beloved person already, another would do him too much harm."

"She'll not be around such misery. It's bad for the spirit. No lady should shoulder such a burden, I'll not stand for it." The old man's voice was steadily rising with fury and Ace's fist clenched harder on Luffy's shoulder. A hiccup escaped Luffy and the adults looked wearily at them both. Dadan scowled and pulled Garp's ear.

"Show some decorum Monkey-bastard," She practically spat. Garp scowled and shook off the hand of the bandit, stalking off towards the house. Dadan followed, throwing a worried glance back at the unmoving siblings. Luffy nuzzled closer to her big brother, basking in the warmth that she so coveted. She tried to focus on the bright side, here was Ace in all of his entirety; but no matter how much she loved Ace, he wasn't Sabo. He wasn't the one who told her bedtime stories, he wasn't the one to bop her on the nose chastising her or the one to ever sit her down and show her softly how to play the battered lute he kept. Because Ace wasn't Sabo. Sabo was dead, and he wasn't ever coming back.

Luffy drew in a breath, but it was choked and rasping. The half-whispered argument still carried, only slightly muted, and it reverberated within her.

"Are they going to take me away Ace?" asked the soft voice of Luffy, broken and slightly nasal from her tears. Her pale and unhealthily flushed face turned up to the profile of her elder brother and hands furrowed in the cloth of his shirt. There was no reaction for a while except for the tension of the boy's jaw and the grip on the younger's shoulder, tightened to a painful level.

After what seemed like an eon, Ace seemed to remember how to form words again. "No," he whispered, "I won't let them. Not you too."

"But, what if they take me away?" Suddenly Luffy's face was buried into the muscles of Ace's chest.

"Then I'll follow you to the ends of the seas." He spoke, a little stronger as his hands stroked the hair on her head and as he murmured soft reassurances. Though for whose benefit was unsure.

* * *

"They lost a brother. You can't intend to ask either one of them to leave the place where his body still lies."

"I intend to take them away from a bad situation. This is not a place for a lady to grow, it was a mistake to leave her here to make attachments in the first place. This town is full of riffraff, hooligans, gangsters, and pirates. I should have known that something like this would have happened." The Vice-Admiral raged and stormed, pacing a path onto the already worn flooring of the mountain hut, but nobody currently cared given the situation. They only watched on with a haunted look, Dadan and Garp the only ones even speaking.

The bandit leader glared at the Marine, her eyes starting to again brim with tears she thought she had pushed back. "Luffy made friends Garp, that's nothin' to be ashamed of. She can't go through life loveless and unhappy!"

"Well she can't go on with these ideas of piracy either." Garp spat. "And she won't be 'loveless' as you said, she'll marry a fine gentleman and fall in love with him. A good strong Marine, dependable with good pay and a sense for justice. These _friends_ as you call them will only hurt her, they're going nowhere good and it would only cause wounds when they end up in the cells of Impel Down." Dadan stared at Garp for a moment before her eyes steeled and in a fluid two steps walked across the room and slapped the man.

Garp moved to speak again, but a single calloused finger pressed forcefully against his lips as Dadan leaned closer to search his eyes, and with a reprimanding tone spoke simply and rather softly." Look at you, proud and brave Vice-Admiral. So much prestige, so much honor. What would you be without your precious Marines?" she mocked with a scoffing note "What would your old friend Rodger be without his adventures to excite him at every turn? What would your son be without his drive for revolution pushing him onward? What would Luffy be without the sea?" The grizzled man looked up with a blaze in his eye.

"And what would a pirate be without their backstabbings and robberies? Each one sending their perpetrators deep into sinful behaviors and treacherous deeds, such company is filth ridden and disgusting. East Blue is rough enough to tear any girl apart, I will not allow my granddaughter to venture to the Grand Line for such tomfoolery as Pirate Kings and treasures." A large fist crashed down upon the wall, breaking the wood which had previously withstood the numerous and large fights the bandits often had. Haki pulsed through the room, free from Garp's normally tight control and fixing the majority of the room in their places. Rage built inside of one person, threatening to overspill until it could no longer be tolerated and in one push of willpower, Dadan found the strength to open her mouth.

"Bastard," she rumbled with clenched fists, "Why don't you take your double standard and shove it right up where the sun doesn't shine! You push and push for her to be a Marine, but now that one thing's changed here you go advocating unhappiness for what's sure to be your own means. I bet you only want to use her as a bargaining chip within the ranks you..you... you misogynistic, power-hungry, twisted excuse of a man!" The two locked gazes, neither budging until Garp lifted his chin up in defiance and turned away with a heavy swish of his cape.

The tight tendons flexed visibly in Dadan's throat and jaw as she worked to say something, anything, change the situation. Despite her outburst, she needed the old pile of monkey poo. Ace couldn't be abandoned by his only kin now, he was far too fragile and his mental state had always left something to be desired anyway. And so even if it would cost the world, even if she had to face the prison's mercies to do it, she wanted to keep the two sibings together. Her criminal heart was normally considered too frigid to host any feelings aside from sick pleasure and greed- but Luffy and Ace were like persistent weeds or perhaps some sort of masochistic plant life, they grew in the most unlikely of places and thrived in conditions that should have ripped them apart. They reminded Dadan of herself at such an age. But yet, no matter the resemblance, she couldn't do a thing. Dadan heaved a sigh and reminded herself not to show her fear, or agitation, or sorrow. The least she could do was give the kids a brave face, it would likely be the last they saw of her.

**So I realize this was extremely short, but I will slowly make every chapter longer. I figure, since I base every chapter on the number of words the last one had, I can rise with the content each time. It's the best way to take care of my slacker self which wishes to do the least amount of work possible. This also clears up confusion that may have arose from the Sabo dieing part. Please take this filler chapter to add to the voting of pairing ships. **

**On another note, I really do like this chapter though. It begins the AU part of this story. A little heads up, Ace and Luffy will now live at Marine HQ. I decided to mash together this fiction with another One Piece plot bunny I had since it already had elements I inadvertently put in. Instead of the normal super happy comedy, I'm making this a darker fiction as in the way I see it would go if it was allowed to be more realistic. As in, Sanji gets laid a lot, (he's a ladies man and face it, pretty good looking,) Nami has done most _everything_ to earn the money she needs (she knows how to use her body to her advantage and she has zero morals concerning money,) etc. **

**Anyway, please review! This is me, signing out! Bye!**


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